Fever
by mynameislow
Summary: It was like any other day on the Sunny. That is until the captain falls ill. Nami now sits worriedly beside her captain, waiting for his recovery. And while waiting, strange emotions start to emerge. Pairing LuffyXNami. Sick!Luffy.
1. Chapter 1

Woo, second fanfiction! :DI've been currently watching/reading One Piece and I'm just loving that anime/manga. I TOTALLY ship Luffy/Nami after reading some fanficton and doujinshi. Hehe. So basically this fanfiction is going to be about them. Well, most of the time. I've just been having this idea for the LONGEEEST time. I just hope you guys like it! :D

Oh, and those who have been reading 'A Taicho Returns'. That fanfiction is currently on **hiatus**.

* * *

It was a very sunny day as Thousand Sunny cruised along the vast blue ocean. Small waves hit the ships' front as if trying to stop it from moving. That, however, did not stop Sunny from moving. The great big ship continued on its journey. A journey it had promised its young pirates.

And there sitting on the figurehead of Sunny was its captain, Monkey D. Luffy. Usually he would be sitting up straight, grinning wildly as he searched for a new island for them to disembark. That or he would be looking back at his crewmembers and joke around with them with his stretching abilities. To put it simple, he would be doing something active, which was the opposite of how he was at the moment.

He was feeling sluggish, having his shoulders slumped forward. It was probably because he didn't get enough sleep yesterday, even when he was well aware he slept like a baby yesterday. Maybe it was the lack of nutrition in his body? No, that couldn't be possible. Luffy must at least have five meals a day and he had already been through two meals. Well, whatever this feeling was, it will soon pass. The black-haired boy smiled weakly and stared ahead, hoping to find an island soon.

It wasn't long before his vision started to blur. Was there a storm coming? The boy looked up and frowned when it turned out that the sky was clearer than ever. This was odd. Blinking, he placed his hands on the figurehead and leaned a little forward. Luffy felt a little tired than usual at that moment and it wasn't really like him to feel like this in the middle of the day. His vision continued to blur, and he felt even more and more tired.

Nami was standing at the helm, her eyes looking up at the captain. She wasn't usually the one at the helm, though for some reason, she felt that she needed to be today. The orange haired girl took her eyes off of her captain for a few moments to look at the deck down bellow. There slept the swordsman, with his legs crossed, arms folded and his katanas on his lap. Right there on the swing was Chopper and Ussop, playing whatever game they were playing. Franky was probably somewhere around the ship building something. And knowing Robin, she'd be at the library expanding her knowledge even more. Everyone practically knew Sanji was in the kitchen, so she didn't need to even think about him.

She smiled and took a deep breath, the smell of the ocean filling her nostrils. Thankfully today was a peaceful day. No marines, no weird pirates, nothing was going to disturb this lovely day of theirs. To her this might sound like heaven, but she knew that to the captain this was extremely boring. Looking up at back, she called him, "Luffy?" He didn't seem to answer her, which lead her to believe that he maybe thinking of something and was deeply engrossed in it.

…

Who was she kidding?! This was Luffy for heaven's sake! Nami chuckled under her breath at that ludicrous thought of hers and decided to call the captain again, "Ne, Luffy!" And again it happened. She frowned. Was he playing some kind of game with her? A silent game? Then again, Luffy can't stay quiet for even two minutes. This raised another issue. Luffy hadn't spoken up since this morning.

"Luffy…?" Nami called cautiously, wondering what her captain was really doing. Before she could even back away from the helm and move up to the figurehead, she started to notice Luffy's body slowly slipping off of the large figurehead. Her brown eyes widened with shock. How reckless could he be?! She was about to call out his name again when she realized that he was probably playing a game with himself, falling off and then stretching to rocket up to the sky. He had done this many times before, so why wouldn't he do it again?

Though something was off this time, and Nami could feel it in her blood. "Luffy!" She yelled after the captain, desperately wanting to catch his attention. This however only caught the attention of the crewmates that were on deck. Before Nami could call out to Luffy again, he had finally slipped off the figurehead. "Luffy!" the girl screamed, running over the edge and looking down at her falling captain. He didn't seem to be moving, which terrified Nami. "Luffy stretch, you idiot!" she screamed after him. Her only response to this was the boy hitting the water, only causing her heart to painfully grip.

"Zoro!" She shouted at the swordsman who was already grumbling about not having enough sleep. Ussop and Chopper stopped playing and looked up at Nami, frowning at her. Wasn't she calling Luffy earlier? They had all assumed that she was yelling at him for eating something that was hers, or maybe touching her tangerines. "Zoro, Luffy fell off of the ship! Help him, Zoro!"

The words 'Luffy' and 'fell' quickly registered to Zoro, quickly causing him to stand up and jump off of the ship, diving in after his captain. Chopper was about to follow suit until Ussop grabbed him and murmured, "You can't swim, Chopper. It's best to leave Luffy to Zoro." Although that didn't stop them both from going over to the side where Zoro jumped off.

Sanji hearing the commotion outside of his kitchen came out to investigate, a frying pan in his hand and the cigarette securely locked between his lips. He was in his 'I-will-kick-your-shitty-ass' mode, ready to attack anyone at sight. To his surprise he only found his crewmembers, all of them looking over the edge of the ship. That shitty marimo wasn't there as well as the captain.

"What's going on?" He asked casually, a hand reaching up to pull the cigarette away from his lips to puff while he used the other one to flip the fish he was frying on the stove earlier. Chopper was the only one to look up as Ussop headed off to bring a rope for Zoro to climb up from when he would emerge with the captain in his arms.

"Luffy fell off!" The young reindeer squeaked, his voice apparently hinting worry. Sanji only scoffed, "That idiot," and went back into the kitchen to set down the frying pan on the stove. After doing so, he reached for the Den Den Mushi, alerting the other members that their captain has once again fell off of the ship. Honestly, how could that idiot be so damn reckless? Taking a puff from his cigarette, Sanji put back the Den Den Mushi and headed out again only to find Zoro laying Luffy down on the grassy deck. The cook noticed that the swordsman's face carried an expression of annoyance, causing him to smirk. With Luffy falling aboard so many times, he couldn't blame the marimo if he was getting sick of it.

"Damn hammer." Sanji heard him say as he approached the group that was surrounding them both. The blonde casually stood beside Nami, his eyes resting on his captain's lifeless body for one minute. Of course he couldn't keep the bubbling feeling of joy that he was standing beside the gorgeous woman, so he clasped his hands together, wiggled his body and squeaked, "Namiiiii-swaaaaan~! I've made a special lunch for youuuuuu, Namiiiii-swaaaan~! It expresses my utmost love for you! Oh Nami-swaaan~!"

However, Nami was not listening to a word he was saying. Instead, she was looking at Luffy, eyes filled with worry. What was up with him? Before she could even do something, Chopper pushed between them and kneeled beside Luffy, hands on his chest as he began to resurrect his captain. It wasn't long before the captain started to cough up water, causing his nakama to sigh. He really is an idiot, Nami thought absent minded as she turned to look over at Sanji, who didn't seem to be even paying attention to Luffy.

"Thank you, Sanji-kun."

"Noooottttt a problem, Namiii-swaaan~!"

They were all soon going back to what they were doing until Zoro spoke up. "Oii, Chopper. Is it me or does Luffy look a little flushed?" He asked the doctor, his eyes slightly narrowed as he glanced back at Luffy's face. Nami turned to look and was a bit surprised to find that his face was indeed flushed. Not only that, but Luffy wasn't grinning. He didn't even say 'Ahh, that was close. I thought I was going to die.' In fact, his eyes were still closed, his breaths were fast and ragged and it did look like his body was shivering a bit.

He didn't look like himself at all.

The crewmembers looked at each other worriedly as Chopper quickly kneeled beside him again. Once his hove touched his forehead, his eyes widened. "He's burning up," the reindeer muttered. None of them heard him at first. Well, they did, but they didn't think they heard him right. Luffy burning up? That didn't make sense at all.

Before any of them could ask Chopper a question, Luffy's eyes began to flutter open. And when his eyes were finally open, the crew could tell that something was very wrong. His eyes seemed glassy to them, his cheeks now redder than ever. That however did not stop Luffy from smiling weakly once he realized who he was staring at. "Heh. I fell in again. Sorry."

"Luffy, you have a fever! Why didn't you tell me you weren't feeling well?" Chopper quickly asked, his brows furrowing with disappointment. He shouldn't be surprised that the captain hadn't told him. Heck, all of the crew thought they could withstand their injuries when obviously they couldn't. This even goes for Zoro.

Luffy blinked and looked at the reindeer, his smile slowly growing. "Eh? Fever? What are you talking about? I don't have one. I feel just fine! Maybe a little weak from the seawater, you know?" That excuse, however, wouldn't last long.

"Luffy, you fell off the figurehead you idiot! What does that tell you?!" Nami hissed, her blood boiling with anger and worry. He didn't even want to admit he was feeling a little under the weather?! What was wrong with him?!

"Huh, so that's how I was in the water. Shishishishi!" The captain laughed before lapsing into a fit of coughs. They weren't average coughs as well. They were the kind that sounded like they could damage the lungs pretty badly. The whole crew was now looking down at their captain who tried to keep his coughs under control.

"See, you are sick!" Usopp accused, his finger pointing at Luffy's nose.

"I--*cough*--am not! I'm fine! It's all the water! You should all know this!" Luffy justified as he started to push himself up a bit.

"Luffy, I need to check up on you. You have a fever and you're coughing. Who knows what else you have? Let me check up on you!" Chopper urged, hoping for Luffy to agree. But everyone knew that Luffy agreeing to this was out of the question. Their captain was the most stubborn creature in the world. The second would be his first mate.

"Chopper's right, Luffy. A check up wouldn't be so bad." Usopp murmured, crossing his arms over his chest. With all the time he had spent with Luffy, he had never seen him get sick. Maybe his sickness would come after some battle, but never out of the blue. And strangely, this worried Usopp even more.

"I'm fine, really! I can even prove it!" And before they could even stop him, the boy pushed himself up into a standing position and placed his hands on his hips, pushing his chest out as if he was saying 'I am the strongest man alive!' Zoro looked up at his captain and noticed he was sweating more than five minutes ago.

"Luffy don't over exhaust yourself! Sit down!" Nami told him with her bossy tone. "Zoro, do something!"

"The captain does what he wants." The swordsman shrugged, knowing what he was saying was the wrong thing. However, he could tell what was going to happen to the captain in a few minutes. So why should he be bossing him and telling him to sit down?

Sanji even knew what was going to happen and he stood there, smoking his cigarette casually as if nothing was happening. It was that moment did Robin and Franky appear on the deck.

"Oiii, what's going on here?" Frankly asked as he saw everyone surrounding Luffy, who apparently was still holding onto his stance. "Didn't you say the captain fell off the ship?"

"Aye, he did. Now he's trying to act all tough when he's sick." Sanji pointed out. His eyes then landed on the older woman and did the same thing he had done with Nami. "Robinnnnn-chwaaaan~! I made you a yuummmmmmmyyy lunch! It expresses my utmost gratitude and love for you!"

Robin chuckled under her breath. "Why thank you, cook-san. Although, shouldn't we paying attention to the captain right now? It doesn't seem like he's going to hold on much longer."

It was true. Luffy's feet seemed to wobble under his weight. Annoyed, the boy looked around at his crewmembers and scoffed. "I'm fine! I'm fine! Now let's go have some lunch!" He declared, even though he wasn't feeling that hungry himself. But like he was going to tell that to anyone.

The members exchanged worried looks between them, minus Sanji and Zoro. How could Luffy still insist he was fine when he couldn't even stand up properly. Nami's eyes softened as she saw Luffy slightly stagger as he tried to make his way up to the kitchen.

That idiot.

What happened next was an instant. Luffy stopped moving, his arms swinging slightly from left to right before his legs decided to give up on him, causing him to collapse. Nami gasped. Usopp called out his name as well as Chopper. Zoro sat there immobile. Robin and Franky stood there, arms crossed over their chest. Luckily, the boy didn't crash onto the deck. Sanji being the closest one to him managed to grab him. "You shitty idiot. You're sick." The blonde mumbled as he pulled Luffy up a bit. Placing his hand on the boy's forehead and winced. "Damn, he's really hot. Oii, Chopper, now's your chance to check up on. And do it fast. His fever seems to be rising."

"Got it." The reindeer then transformed into a human. He walked up to Sanji and took Luffy from his arms, cradling him in his own as if he were a child. "I'll take care of him, I promise."

"Never doubted you, Chopper." Zoro spoke up from where he was sitting. "Now go before that idiot of a captain wakes up again."

And with that the crew watched silently as their captain was carried into the sick room, each of them wondering what the hell was going on with their captain.

"Luffy..."

* * *

:D I do hope you enjoyed that! There'll be more in chapter two, I promise!

Don't forget to review! It lets my heart FLUTTER. MAKE IT FLUTTER PLZKTHNX. 3


	2. Chapter 2

I didn't really expect reviews from the first chapter! I'm really happy about that. Haha. I'm glad you guys like the story so far, and I hope you'll like it even more. :D

* * *

They hadn't really expected Chopper to take _that_ long on Luffy. An hour was something a little believable. Now it's been over an hour and he's still in there. What was Chopper doing? Nami worriedly bit on her lower lip as she looked over her shoulder for the hundredth time. She alone was sitting on the stairs, thinking that the doctor was taking way too long, while the rest of the crew went along their merry way.

Stupid crew.

They could at least act like they were worried instead of treating this day as if it were any other day. For example, Zoro was sleeping; comfortably she should add, on the deck as if there was no care in the world. He was the first mate, for heaven's sake! He should be the one who's worried the most!

Franky had taken Usopp with him to tamper with whatever it is he's working on, making that idiot temporarily forget about Luffy. Then again, that was a smart thing from Franky, because knowing Usopp he'd be running around saying that this was the end of their adventure that Luffy was going to die.

Robin was forgiven. She's always forgiven. Does she even need a reason? No, she doesn't.

Sanji was messing around the kitchen, probably making her something. He was forgiven, too.

"Stop fidgeting, damn it. Go back to whatever you were doing and leave everything to Chopper," someone spoke up with an obviously annoyed tone, making Nami snap back into reality. Her eyes glanced up at the figure that spoke to her and found that it was none other than the swordsman.

Her brows instantly furrowed and she glared at him. "I can do whatever I please. But why are you even talking to me?! Shouldn't you be standing by the door, asking Chopper how is he?! You're the first-mate, Zoro!"

"I don't think Chopper would appreciate me knocking on him while he's treating Luffy. And it doesn't seem to be something serious, because if it was, he'd be calling all of us out and you know this. Now just go back to what you were doing. I can't even sleep."

Silence hovered between the both of them for a few moments until Nami's hands slowly started to ball into fists by her sides. Her head was down as her shoulders started to shake, causing Zoro to frown. What was wro—

"Can't… Even… Sleep?" Nami hissed, snapping her head up. Her brown orbs weren't even brown anymore. They were blacker, dangerously shining as her shoulders shook even more. It was apparent that her fury was about to burst and this made Zoro take a step back, a scared expression crossing his face.

"Can't… Even… Sleep?! I'LL SHOW YOU NOT SLEEPING YOU—"

"Oii, oiiii, oiii, Nami!" The swordsman slightly stuttered as he took another step back, waving his hands in front of him.

"COME BACK HERE YOU UNGRATEFULL—"

Who would have thought that the man known as the Pirate Hunter, the man with a bounty of 120,000,000 beri, the man who always faces danger head-on would be afraid of a woman who was not only a year younger than him, but far more weaker than anyone he had fought with.

With all the yelling and hollering that was going on, Sanji exited the kitchen, a white apron wrapped around his waist. As always, one hand was holding onto the cigarette while the other hand was hidden in his pocket. The blonde casually smoked for a few minutes before looking down at the commotion. He couldn't help but crack a smile when he saw that the shithead was being chased by the oh-so-lovely Nami.

"OIII, OIII, NAMI! NAMI, STOP IT!"

"YOU, DO YOU HAVE NOTHING ELSE TO DO BUT SLEEP?!"

"SAYS THE ONE WHO DRAWS!"

"I DRAW MAPS! THEY ARE USEFUL THINGS!"

"DOESN'T MAKE A DIFFERENCE, YOU'RE STILL A GRE—"

"Oii, Marimo. You better not say anything bad about Nami-san." Sanji had cut off their argument by standing between them, his back facing Nami as if protecting her from the green monster.

"Ehhhhhh?" Sneered Zoro, tilting his head slightly to the right. Did that ero-cook say something?

Taking a few puffs from his cigarette, Sanji tossed it below him and stepped on it, exhaling the remaining smoke into the swordsman's face who coughed. "I said to not say anything bad about Nami-san."

"And what if I want to?"

"Then I'll kick your shitty ass into the ocean, shitty-marimo."

Zoro chuckled, placed his hands and two of his katanas and sneered, "I'd like to see you try, ero-cook."

And they were off. Zoro had already had his katanas out the moment Sanji attacked him with his leg. Up, down, left and right they went, moving across the deck and leaving Nami a little dumbfounded. Did they honestly have to fight over something so juvenile? The girl sighed and placed a hand on her forehead, waiting for them to finish. Not even a minute passed before she started to feel a menacing vein throb in her forehead, her left eye slightly twitch with impatience.

Not one of them seemed to strike the other, making them more frustrated. They exchanged swears as they kept on fighting, each wanting to at least hit the other once even if they had to resort to verbal attacks. So it was quite normal for them to unexpectedly get hit on the head by a fist.

"STOP IT!"

In the sick room, Chopper, who had no idea what was going on outside with the crew, held a wet cloth between his hooves. The reindeer dabbed the cloth into a bowl of water just beside him, allowing it to absorb as much water as he saw fit. He then squeezed the cloth, watching water droplets fall from the cloth.

Placing the cloth onto Luffy's forehead, the doctor sighed. Luffy didn't seem to even notice that there was something cold currently placed on him. Actually, Luffy was completely out of it. The only thing that assured Chopper that he was alive was the rise and fall of his chest. However, what bothered Chopper was the apparent difficulty Luffy was having with his breathing. It was shallow and sounded a bit raspy.

Of course, that was expected with what he had. He just couldn't help himself. This was Luffy, his fearsome captain. Never had he seen him this weak before, perhaps weak from a fight, but not from an illness. He couldn't even remember if Luffy had ever been sick the moment he became the ship's doctor.

With another sigh, he jumped down from his chair and headed out of the room. It was time to tell everyone what was wrong with Luffy. They were probably waiting on their last nerve, praying for their captain's wellbeing. But when he opened the door, he was surprised to find Nami sitting on top of Sanji who was on top of Zoro.

"Don't make me jump on you both!" Threatened Nami, which never ceased to amaze the small reindeer. "Now apologize to each other!"

"Like hell!" They both replied heatedly. "Stop copying what I say! Oi!"

"Um… Everyone?" squeaked Chopper, hoping to get their attention. It didn't seem to work, though, as Nami had really jumped on both of them, causing groans to fall from their lips.

"Now apologize!"

"Everyone!"

It was at that moment, the three looked up from the deck and saw Chopper. Nami instantly forgot what she was doing and jumped off of the two men. And with Nami off of Sanji, Zoro had the opportunity of throwing the perverted cook off of him, which he had done with no hesitation.

"How's Luffy?" Nami asked, her tone expressing her worry.

"That's what I came outside to tell you. I want everyone to gather around." Chopper told her, glancing back at the room to be sure he had closed the door.

With those words, the navigator felt her heart squeeze painfully. If Chopper had wanted everyone to gather, it meant that Luffy was very sick. He could be on the verge of death! Nami bit her lower lip nervously as negative thoughts ran through her head. She wasn't even paying attention to the two men behind her who had started fighting all over again.

Sanji being the man who always cared about women noticed Nami's stance as he fought Zoro, making him hop onto one of the man's katanas and jump off of it so he could be beside Nami in an instant. "Nammiii-swaan! What's wrong, my beloved?!"

"Oii, freakin' love-cook don't jump on my kata—Oh… Chopper. How's Luffy?" Zoro asked once he remembered that Chopper had left the sick room.

"Like I told Nami, I want everyone to gather around."

Zoro frowned, putting his katanas back where they belonged. "That serious?"

Chopper's only reply was silence, and that alone cause Nami to lose a little balance. And for once, she allowed Sanji to hold her.

"Just get everyone."

It did take a while, but the crew had eventually assembled on the deck. Chopper made his way down the steps and stood in front of them, his arms crossed over his furry chest. He looked at each of the crewmembers, waiting for one of them to ask.

That was, of course, Usopp's cue.

"So? What's with him? Is it curable? Is he going to die?! Ohh, no, I knew it! I knew we shouldn't have gone on that island! My I-cannot-get-on-that-island disease was acting up! You should've all listened to me! If it wer—"

The marksman instantly stopped, as a sharp katana was just inches away from touching his long nose. "Usopp, if you don't shut your mouth, I'll gladly shut if for you."

"Uhduh…duhuh," stuttered Usopp, sweat starting to pour from his forehead as his whole body started to shake. "Oh, oh I feel so very faint. My Zoro-is-an-awful-crew-member disease is acting up again."

The crew didn't seem to be really caring about what was happening between the marksman and the first-man. Then again, this occurrence was rather usual, a reason to why it was ignored. Robin at the moment stepped up and spoke in on behalf of the crew. "Doctor-san, how is the captain?"

Their first reply was a long intake of breath followed by a deep sigh. "His fever is still high, but I've managed to stabilize it. However, I'm not one hundred percent sure it'll stay stabilized that long. With what he has, it'll fluctuate for sure."

Nami couldn't bare it any longer. She had been waiting for hours (really, it was more like two) and Chopper only seemed to be trying to postpone the answer, as if he didn't know it. "What does he have, Chopper! Just spit it out already it!" she frustratedly said, not having the patience to wait any longer.

With big beady eyes, the reindeer nodded, "Uhm. Luffy… Luffy has pneumonia."

Silence dominated the whole deck for what seemed to be an eternity for Nami. Her arms dangled by her sides as eyes slightly widened in disbelief. She could feel her heart thunder against her chest, her ears about to burst from the pressure she felt in them.

Pneumonia.

Pneaumonia.

Pneaumonia.

The words kept repeating in her head over and over again. It wasn't possible. Luffy had never been sick before, he never even experienced a flu! How could he have gotten pneamonia?!

That question seemed to be going through Robin's head as well as she actually verbalized the question to Chopper. The doctor sighed for what seemed to be the millionth time that day and scratched the back of his head. "I don't really know how he got it, but at some point he must have eaten so—(Author's note: Yes, pneumonia can be passed through food. )"

But the reindeer was stopped with a heated glare that came from the cook. "Are you implying that my cooking is bad, Chopper?" The man sneered, pocketing his hands as if preparing himself to beat the crap out of the reindeer.

The only reply was a squeak and a quick dash towards the tree that had the swing on. Chopper peaked from behind the tree (he didn't do it right, either), his eyes glancing at the angry cook. "I didn't say yours, Sanji! I mean Luffy could have eaten something from the last island we went through!"

"Yo, little cook-bro. Don't you go and scare the doctor, you know? He's the only one who'll be able to actually help Luffy. None of us here are exactly geniuses like him."

"You asshole! Just saying that won't make me happy, baka!" squealed Chopper from behind the tree as he clapped with glee and apparent approval of the comment. He really did not know how to hide his emotions.

Zoro gave a grunt to the whole ordeal and walked away. He already has the information. No need to pester Chopper. Usopp who was previously silenced by Zoro went down on his knees and began to hit the grassy deck with an open hand. "Ohhh this is the end of it! The end of our adventure! Luffy is going to diiiiieee! LUUUFFFFFYYYYYY," he started to sob, causing everyone to look at him as if he were a freak.

…

Everyone turned to look back at Chopper, excluding Zoro and Usopp who was still sobbing. Nami was going to show a thing or two to Zoro, but right now knowing what was happening to Luffy was the most important thing to her.

"So what do we do now, Chopper?"

"All we can do really is wait. I've given him some medicine to help with the fever and coughs, but that's all I can do. We'll have to take turns on looking after him. His fever could spike at any given time."

And with that, the crew stayed a few moments discussing their turns before breaking apart, each on their way to do what they were previously doing. Only this time, they had something to think about.

* * *

It was three days later at night did Nami find herself sitting beside her sick captain, her hands holding onto the wet cloth that had been previously placed on his forehead. She couldn't bear looking at him. His cheeks were flushed, his breaths were shallow, his brow was sweaty and the sheets uncomfortably clung to him. She couldn't believe that the man lying in front of her was once her eccentric and hyperactive captain. That man was nowhere to be found now. And that alone caused her heart to ache.

Chopper had said he was getting better, but was this really better? It didn't seem like it. It seemed like Luffy was taking a turn to the worst to her. But she wasn't a doctor, so she really couldn't tell.

Sighing, she dipped the cloth into the bowl of water. How long will he be like this, she wondered. It would be horrible if they were to find an island before he was fully recovered. One of Luffy's extreme joys was when they were about to set on an island. Nami paused as that thought crossed her mind and smiled weakly. He will be back before they find an island. She had faith in him as well as everyone on board. He was her captain. Well, not exactly hers per-say. He didn't belong to her. He didn't actually belong to anyone! No, no!

Nami let out a nervous chuckle as she set the now soaked cloth onto his forehead. Seconds later, Luffy gave out a groan, quickly making Nami's cheeks flare up. Why was she blushing?! He was just groaning cause of the cold that was seeping through his body! She shouldn't blush!

And if that wasn't bad enough, she had a pair of chocolaty brown eyes stare up at her. Nami squeaked, slightly shocked, but soon realized that Luffy had woken up.

"Luffy!"

He didn't seem to hear her though, since his eyes were glassy and his expression was, well, expressionless. Nami frowned as worry started to crawl through her. At least he was up, she thought as she ran a hand gently through his hair, hoping it would soothe him back to sleep. And to her surprise, it did seem to soothe him since he his eyelids began to droop.

"You've been worrying us all, Luffy." Nami spoke softly the moment he was asleep, knowing that he wouldn't be able to hear her. "We've all been missing your ecstatic yell about catching a fish with Usopp and Chopper. Or when you yell at Sanji for food. For once we have a full fridge," she chuckled lightly, that however, did not seem to lift her spirits. "I miss watching you bother that idiot Zoro. I miss you shocking me when you ask Robin what book she's reading. I bet everyone misses that, too. I miss when your eyes light up at anything Franky makes, even when it's the most useless creation ever! Hah. But, you know, I mostly miss hearing you laugh an—" But Nami stopped there, realizing what she was saying. She was speaking on behalf of the crew. Of course! That's why she was saying 'I'. The 'I' was the whole crew, not just her!

She felt her cheeks flush, causing her to shut her eyes tightly, squeeze her legs shut together and purse her lips. Why was she suddenly so bashful!? This was Luffy, for God's sake! He gave everyone a fright, not just her! He made everyone miss him, not just her! Everyone gave thier time to sit with him, not her alone!

"Nami, just stay with him and be quiet. Yes, yes, that'll be easier." She murmured to herself as she took off the cloth and soaked it into the bowel once more.

"Mnmnnhnhn…"

The navigator froze for a moment before turning around to see that Luffy was infact asleep. A sigh of relief fell from her lips. If he had heard what she had said, he might have taken the wrong idea. Thinking over that again, she shook her head and laughed. Luffy wouldn't even take the wrong idea. He probably wouldn't have a clue of what she might be implying. Not that she was implying anything, but if anyone had heard her, they might have taken the wrong idea an—

Stop it, Nami.

Nami took a deep breath, calming her beating heart. Whatever was with her, it better be gone tomorrow.

"Oi, Nami." A voice called, piercing her thoughts.

"AH!"

She didn't know how it happened, but Nami had found herself on the floor, with her butt aching painfully. "Eetttaayyy," she murmured under her breath as she rubbed her backside gently. Her brown eyes then looked up at whoever called for her and saw that it was that stupid swordsman with a smug smile on his lips.

"Did I scare ya?" He asked, not hiding his pleased tone.

"Shut up, idiot! You're going to wake Luffy up! What are you even doing here? You should be watch. You know, that thing that you do to see if any enemy ships are coming by? I don't think your brain can process this properly, but our captain is sick, meaning that we are vulnerable at the moment."

His brows instantly furrowed at her words and he grunted, "I only came to tell you that there seems to be a storm coming. And since you're the one who navigates this ship, I thought you should know."

Nami had intended to ignore every word he was going to say, except when he said storm, her head snapped up at him. Storm? At this time? Ugh, just was they wanted! Standing up, she brushed her legs quickly and exited the sickroom, heading towards the upper deck where the helm was with Zoro in toe.

The clouds did seem to be a little darker, she thought as she looked up into the sky. And it didn't seem like it was going to be a storm that was going to be beaten easily. Running a hand through her hair, she groaned. "Just what we need. Listen, Zoro, the moment that cloud," she pointed to the darkest one, which seemed to be far away at the moment, "looks like it's getting closer to us, I want everyone on deck."

"Is it that bad?" asked the swordsman, clearly bothered by this. He didn't really like storms. And with a sick captain on board, the task of going through a storm seemed to be very difficult.

"It isn't actually a nice storm. But not to worry! We'll manage somehow like always."

"Heh. Like always."

"Aaaaaaacccccccceeeeee!"

Suddenly both navigator and swordsman froze as they heard that. Was it their imagination? They stared at each other, before they realized what they have done. They have left a sick Luffy alone when Chopper specifically said that someone should be watching him.

"Aaaaaaaaaaccccccccccceeeee!" was called, which was immediately followed by a series of coughs. "Aaaaa-*cough*-aaaaaaaaac-*coughcough*-ccee!"

"Luffy!" Both Nami and Zoro hollered in panic, running toward the source. It didn't seem like it was coming from the sickroom. Oh no, this was coming from outside, making Nami's heart fall beyond her feet, maybe even beyond the ship.

As they made their way down the stairs they were faced with what seemed to be the most frightening thing they had ever seen. Luffy was standing on the railing, his arms raised into the sky as if waving down at someone.

"Luffy!" Nami screeched, panic seizing her heart. She was about to go and pull him down when Zoro grabbed her by the waist. "Wait! If he moves, he might fall."

At that screech Luffy seemed to hear her since he turned around and looked at her, tilting his head to the side. Nami gasped. He didn't seem like he was there at all. His eyes were half closed, his cheeks extremely flushed even in the dark and his clothes clung onto his sweaty body. His bare feet seemed to be unbalanced as he was swaying from side to side.

"Luffy get down from there now!" Nami desperately begged him, tears rolling down her cheeks. He wasn't listening to her, though. He simply stood there staring at her, his face expressionless. That is until a small smile appeared on his lips.

"Mak-Makino. Ace is back," he said in almost a whisper, his voice barely audible. And before Zoro could jump forward to rescue his hallucinating captain, Luffy's eyes rolled back, his legs buckled beneath him and fell.

"LUFFFFYYYYYYYYYYYYY!"

* * *

Is it me or did I rush through this chapter? If I did, then I apologize. It's because in my other story someone had told me I was lagging a bit, and I didn't really want to repeat the same thing. So I apologize if I rushed! It'll be better the next chapter, I promise!

Please don't forget to review! :D Not only do they make me happy, but they make me grow WINGS. YES. YES THEY DO.


	3. Chapter 3

I am EXTREMELY sorry for being so late in updating! My life has just been so hectic, what with uni and all. This chapter is a little shorter since I decided to cut it in half and not make you guys wait any longer. Again, I am SORRRRRY for making you wait! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

EXCLAIMER: I do not own this series. It belongs to the genius, Oda-sensei. 3

* * *

Her upper body was on top of his lifeless one. Her shoulders shook violently with each breath she took. Tears uncontrollably strolled down her cheeks as she clung onto his shirt desperately. Her teeth held her lower lip tightly to the point of almost drawing blood. The idiot. The stupid idiot. Why did he leave the sickroom? Couldn't he tell where he was? The idiot.

It felt like it was only ages ago that she had screamed his name, wanting him to snap out of his hallucination, desperately wanting him to respond to her, to have her name be passed by his lips. The feeling of a dagger going through her heart came to her when she saw his eyes roll back. Fear gripped her. She was afraid that she'd lose him, afraid that the ocean would take him away. And it didn't seem like she was the only one who experienced that fear.

Zoro stood a few feet away from both of them, his arms tightly crossed against his chest. He was standing sideways, allowing Nami to have her privacy. He knew he should be calling Chopper to aid Luffy, but a few moments wouldn't hurt, because never before had Zoro seen Nami cry. Not when she was gravely ill, not when she faced fearful enemies who were obviously much more stronger than she was and especially not when she lost her money. It was why he allowed her a few moments with the captain.

It was a miracle that Luffy hadn't fallen into the ocean as they thought he would. The moment his legs buckled beneath him, Zoro rushed to grab him before he fell and also mentally prepared himself to jump after him if he did in fact fall, but luckily that never happened. Instead, the captain fell forward, making it easier for Zoro to grab him before he smashed into the deck. Not that it would harm him, but still.

The moment he held his captain in his arms, he heard a loud thud, causing him to turn. What he had seen practically shocked him beyond all measures. Nami had fallen to her knees, her arms dangling by her sides, her eyes as wide as an owl's and filled with tears. Only one word passed her lips. Only one word was uttered. And it didn't surprise him that it was the captain's name.

Zoro looked away, not wanting to watch her cry. He knew he had no talent in consoling others, especially women. If only the ero-cook was here, he'd know what to tell her. That thought almost caused him to choke on his own breath, but he held it in. This was no time to be thinking childishly. He set Luffy down onto the grassy deck, close to Nami, and made sure he hadn't inflicted any more damages upon himself. Once reassured, Zoro stood up and was about to leave when he heard Nami silently sob.

"You idiot," she whimpered as she grasped onto his shirt tightly. "You big idiot. You could have _drowned._"

She was aware he couldn't hear her since he was out cold. Saying that to him, however, comforted her in a way.

"I'll go call Chopper, Nami. You stay here with Luffy." Zoro spoke up, causing her to look up at him with tearful eyes. Rubbing them forcefully, she shook her head and took a deep breath, calming herself down.

"He'll get worse if he stays outside like this. You take him in and I'll call Chopper."

"You sure?"

Nami nodded her reply to the swordsman, knowing that she wouldn't be any good to Luffy if she stayed with him. Besides, it looked like the storm they were discussing earlier was coming sooner than she had thought. A sick captain and a storm do not go well.

Standing up, she brushed her knees and then rubbed her hand under her pinkish nose. "You just carry him into the infirmary. I'll go get Chopper." Nami told him, heading towards the boy's cabinet before he could even discuss with her. It didn't seem like he was going to anyways, as she heard a grunt when she was about to take her fifth step.

She was lucky to have Zoro with her when this all happened, Nami began to think. If he hadn't been there in time to catch Luffy, she didn't know what would've happened. Nami bit her lower lip, trying not to think about the topic so much. Getting Chopper was her mission. And if she couldn't do that, than she was a complete failure. But seeing as she was Nami, the ship's great navigator, she could never be a failure.

That thought gave her a boost of confidence once she reached the door to the boy's cabin. Her eyes stared at the doorknob for one or two moments, before she slowly raised her hand and tightly held onto the knob.

Deep breaths.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Eyes tightly shut; she turned the knob and opened the door as gently as she could. Nami was very thankful that the door wasn't squeaking like it used to on Marry. Gulping, she took a step forward and peeked into the room. Snores echoed the room, assuring her that they were all deep in sleep. She didn't want to wake the whole lot of them up. Not right now. It would be best if they worried about the up coming storm than Luffy.

Her feet dared to take more steps, entering the room. She wished she hadn't. The moment she entered, it felt like a horrible stench slapped her face. The girl gagged, trying to compose herself as best as possible. What did these boys do in their room? What did they have? The room smelled so horrible, it would have probably made Robin cry, which was an unimaginable thing.

She still needed to go deeper into the forest of stench to get Chopper. Thinking about it, Nami felt bad for him. He had to live with monsters. Shutting her eyes and composing herself by straightening up, she covered her hand over her nose and mouth to not allow the smell seep into them, and walked ahead. Nothing was going to stop her!

She knew how the room looked like in the day, but now Nami was wondering how it looked like at night. Some might call her mad, though she had her reasons. These boys were monsters and it was most likely that they loved setting up traps for each other. Not only that, but boys never pick up their clothes. Never. So Nami was expecting to find a sock thrown on the floor or a pair of underwear.

What she did not expect was what her foot had stepped in a few minutes later.

Her eyes widened, horrified. She did not want to look down. No, she did not. It was squishy and gooey, and it felt disgusting. Nami had the urge to scream and run out of the room to the nearest bathroom to wash it, and then come back to smack and yell at the boys for leaving something disgusting on the ground. But she had a mission and it was to retrieve Chopper.

She was going to strangle him.

Twitching, Nami pulled her foot away from the goo and kept on walking. Her foot made a squeaky sound every time she took a step, which made it even more disgusting. Guuhh.

Nami stopped the moment she sensed that she was close to a bed. She hoped it was Chopper's. Alas, it wasn't. It belonged to Usop and Sanji, Sanji being on the bottom while Usop on the top. Usop had one of his legs dangling from the edge of the bed in contrast to Sanji whose whole body looked a little stiff when sleeping. Nami stared at them out of curiosity before moving ahead. It didn't take long before she stopped like a statue at Sanji's murmurs.

"Mmm… Mellllloriiiineeee~"

Sigh.

"Mmnnn… Nammiii-swaaaan, oh how soft your skin is. Mmmmmm more sun-cream? Haaaaaaa~~"

She was going to hit him when he wakes up. After he gives her breakfast, of course.

Sighing once more at the blonde's stupidity, Nami continued, soon finding Chopper's bunk. His bunk was beneath Franky's. The navigator was surprised, truthfully. Assuming Franky was heavy since he was a cyborg, wouldn't the upper bunk collapse on the lower bunk? She shook her head, wondering why she was even thinking that. No matter, she just needed to get Chopper.

Going down on one knee, Nami gently placed her hand onto the reindeer's shoulder and shook it. At first there was no response, so she shook again.

"Mmm… Luffy, leggooo." Chopper murmured, pulling himself away from Nami's touch and curling up into a ball.

"Teh. Honesly," Nami breathed, placing her hand once more on his shoulder and shaking it more roughly this time around.

"Mm… Luffy, don't eat me. I'm no-not meat."

Poor thing. He was still facing the threat of possibly being eaten by their captain. The doctor of the ship was not safe. Not one bit.

However, now was not the time to feel sorry for him. "Oi, Chopper! Get up!" Nami hissed, shaking him for the last time. "Get up or I'm going to ask Sanji to cook you! Get up!"

It somehow worked like magic as Chopper's eyes cracked wide open instantaneously. "Hu? Nami!" Chopper spoke up, before Nami smacked her hand onto his lips, shutting him up. She a finger against her lips and made a 'Shh' sound, making it apparent to him that she did not want to make any noise. Chopper, out of fear, nodded slowly. He didn't dare to take her hand away from his mouth. So, he just laid there, staring at the older girl with wide eyes.

"I need you. It's urgent. Come on," Nami whispered as she took her hand away from his mouth and grabbed onto his arm, pulling him out of the bed. The navigator expected extreme silence from that point on, but she was mistaken. Because the moment Chopper's feet landed on the wooden floor, his hooves made a clunk sound. This caused Nami to glare at the poor reindeer, who couldn't help being born with hooves. Chopper was about to comment about his hooves. Until Usopp jolted up into a sitting position, startling both Nami and Chopper.

"I am CAPTAIN USOPP-SAMA! I am the mighty wa—warrior of the seaaaaa! I have fifty—No, seventy million subordinates! Fear meee… Fea—Fea—"

Thud.

And he was back to sleep.

Nami stared at the sleeping figure, confused. What the hell just happened? Looking down at Chopper for an explanation, the reindeer simply shrugged its shoulders and said, "At least it's better that what Luffy says. His is a little… awkward."

Why wasn't Nami surprised?

"Come on, we don't have time." She said, leading the way to the exit. This time, she luckily avoided the sticky thing.

Once she was outside, Nami's eyes widened in alarm. The storm she thought that looked like they might go through easily didn't seem to be that way anymore. In fact, it looked like a storm that would take them a while to go through, a storm that would probably result in some damages. Then again, this ship was made out of a special tree.

"Nami?"

Nami shook her head, trying her best to forget about the storm at the moment and get Chopper to Luffy as fast as possible. "Come on. I'll explain later," she murmured before heading up towards the stairs with the reindeer behind.

Chopper didn't think he needed to ask why he was being taken upstairs. It was quite obvious. This was about Luffy. Had his fever spiked, he wondered. Did he wake up? Was he feeling well if he did? But if he did wake up, why would Nami be secretive about waking him up? She would just storm into their room and announce it to everyone. Something was up. What that was, however, was still a mystery to him.

Once they reached the second platform, Chopper could see Zoro standing outside of the infirmary like a guard would do. He frowned at this, wondering why Zoro was doing it. It looked as if he was cautious about enemy's coming by and attacking the ship. If that were the case, everyone would be standing by that door. Why was Zoro there?

Nami was standing in front of Chopper, so it was her that opened the door to the infirmary, showing their captain sleeping in his bed. From where Chopper stood, he looked like he did earlier. Once he got closer, though, his opinion on the matter changed. His skin was more flushed, the bags underneath his eyes were much more darker, his breaths shallower than before. It was in that instant did Chopper go into the doctor mode, rushing towards Luffy's bedside.

"What happened?' The doctor asked, looking at both Zoro and Nami. At first they didn't say a word, looking at each other and having odd looks come upon their faces.

Nami hesitated at first, hoping for Zoro to give Chopper his answer. "See… the thing is… Luffy just out of nowhere woke up, stood on the edge of the ship and almost fell. Oh, he also kind of hallucinated."

Silence beckoned upon the room for quite sometime. Chopper broke it by going, "What? WHAT? You just let him go outside? Nami, are you insane? You should have been watching him closely!"

Nami was flabbergasted at Chopper's words, that she quickly pointed her finger at Zoro and said," It's not my fault! Zoro was the one who got me out of the infirmary in the first place!"

"Oi, oi, oi. Don't put the blame on me. I just asked you to check the storm that was coming."

"It's still you'—"

"Wait, wait! What storm?" The reindeer interrupted, his eyes wide with fear.

Nami again hesitated before informing Chopper about the storm Zoro had spotted. "I don't think it's what I expected, though. It looks worse. It seems like we're going to have a field day with this."

"You said it was something we could handle." Zoro remarked, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning against the doorway.

"At first, yes. Now, however, it doesn't seem to look that way."

Chopper frowned in worry, looking down at Luffy and then murmuring, "A storm is not good for Luffy . Not in his state. He's worse than he was yesterday from what I can see. His fever is higher, and he seems to be bruising. A storm would only worsen his condition."

The navigator, who was a little disturbed by the information sighed, placing her fingers on her temple and rubbing it. "It's not like we can control the weather. This is the Grand Line. Everything is unexpected."

"This time, let's just hope nothing unexpected happens to Luffy."

"Don't worry!" Nami grinned, "This navigator might not know about how to cure a patient, but she sure knows how to steer a large ship in a storm! Everything will be just fine."

That did not seem to be the case hours later.

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I know it's not that juicy, but I promise you the next chapter will be!

Thank you for reading! :D 3


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. It's allll Oda's.

* * *

Blink.

Blink.

The ceiling was wooden, that's what his mind registered. He couldn't think of anything else at the moment. The ceiling was just wooden.

But then why was he feeling like he was rocking back and forth?

Wasn't that a thought?

Wasn't this a thought?

His head felt too... Was there a word for what he was feeling? There must be. Now that he thought about it more, he recalled that it started with a F. Frog? No, that wasn't it. Fun? That wasn't it either, however, fun was a word he remembered hearing a lot.

Speaking of hearing, he realized that there were voices shouting. It made him feel... Would the right word be bothered? He didn't know. He just knew that he didn't like this feeling. In fact, he hated it. Somehow he knew that these voices shouldn't be shouting. He also heard waves. The sea. It didn't sound right. It didn't feel right.

He successfully managed to push himself off of what he was sleeping on. Bed. He was starting to recall some things. What he held tightly in his hands were sheets. Bed sheets. His hand reached up yo the back of his head, rubbing it gently. It felt like his head was under a lot of pressure. He shook his head.

Now to get up.

His hand tightly held onto the edge of the bed as he had already swung his legs over it. He felt lightheaded, but he had already decided that nothing would stop him. He wanted to see the owners of those shouts, because for some reason, he knew they shouldn't be yelling. Instead, they should be... What was the word? He shut his eyes tightly, trying to clear his head to remember.

La... Laughter. They should be laughing. Yes, laughing.

He found himself standing on his feet, slightly wobbling. That didn't stop him. He moved forward, towards that thing people go through. A door. Yes, that's what it was called. The second he reached it, he placed his hand on the knob and leaned head against it, feeling the wooden texture against his forehead. It was soft, yet a little rough. It didn't make much sense, but a lot of things weren't making sense now.

He opened the door.

Something was splattered on his face.

Water.

Water?

"Sanji pull that rope over there! Franky, steer to the left! Ussop, Chopper, Zoro, make sure you're not pulling too hard!

He knew who yelled those, but his mind was just too… too…

"Grab onto something!" someone shouted from afar, the tone of their voice sounding desperate.

What was happening hit him right at that moment. The moment he saw one of his nakamas almost flying overboard. The almost because the instant he saw them, he stretched his arms onto the foremast, tightly grasping it, and flew right towards them, catching them, and throwing them back onto the deck.

What happened next, to him, was unknown, as he had immediately blacked out. However, the last thing he could recall was water. Lots of it.

* * *

None of them could believe what had happened. They all realize that they'd seen it with their own eyes, but they still couldn't believe it. The storm had been raging on, each of them on their posts doing whatever they can to sail safely that is until a large wave crashed into the deck. They had all been holding onto something, however Ussop lost his grip and soon found himself in midair.

At that moment Ussop began to pray. Loudly.

"OOOYYAAAAH GWAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Or what seemed like a prayer.

Zoro had been the closet one to him. His protective instincts kicked in, preparing himself to jump the second Ussop was close enough (A/N I think Zoro is very punctual when it comes to something like this. o_o). He was about to jump, but out of nowhere his captain flew in, stretching his arms, grabbing Ussop and then throwing him back onto the grassy deck.

And then Luffy flew…

And flew…

"LUUFYYY!"

* * *

He was slapping his captain's cheek repeatedly as sheer fear ran through him. This couldn't be happening, this wasn't what he had imagined would happen. Never had he thought he'd be in this position. He was hoping, wishing, and even praying that his captain would wake up.

"Oiii, wake up you shitty captain!" He snapped. The situation they were in was very unnerving as the rain kept on pouring heavily down on them. And at that moment Sanji couldn't really stand up from the spot they were on. The reasons were because, first of all Luffy was laying on him, and secondly…

He couldn't move his legs.

Any normal person would have freaked out, or better yet, fainted from shock. However, Sanji found this to be terribly annoying. If another wave crashed on the deck, it would most likely toss his captain (and himself) overboard. He didn't think Luffy could stand another wave.

"Oiii, cook-niichan!"

Sanji looked up from his captain's face and into the dark deck. He recognized the voice that was calling him, but could scarcely see them.

"Franky?"

"Are you alright?"

He didn't know how to answer that question. He was alright. Then again, he wasn't. Sanji kept quiet for a few seconds as he thought of what he should say.

"Cook-niichan?"

"I'm fine! Just get Chopper to take Luffy before another wave crashes the deck!"

"Gotcha!"

Sanji looked back down at Luffy. He'd never seen his captain in such a state. His face was pale and his clothes were plastered on his skin, showing how much weight he's lost. Once this was all over, Sanji was going to cook him a feast. That is, if he was capable of standing in the kitchen.

The sound of thunder crackled through the sky, causing Sanji to jolt and slightly tense. He didn't know much about weather conditions, but he worried things would get worse.

"Shit," he whispered to himself while he stared up at the sky, holding Luffy tightly against him in a protective manner.

What he would give to have a cigarette in his mouth right now.

"Sanji?"

"Chopper!"

The reindeer wasn't in his small form like he always is. Instead, he was in his human form due to the storm. Sanji couldn't clearly see him approaching them at first, but when he got close enough, he was able to see him. The reindeer's fur coat was drenched in water as was his pinkish hat. He stood tall, closely hovering above Sanji.

"Wha… What happened to you?" He squeaked, going on his knees so he could have a better look at him. Sanji shook his free hand at Chopper.

"Take Luffy and then take care of me later. He's the priority, not me!"

"But…!"

"Listen to me Chopper. The captain always comes first. Always."

Chopper was too hesitant to listen to him, and he knew it. It was why Sanji grabbed the reindeer by the front of his fur, pulled him in and looked him into the eye. "Take him or I'll cook you in one of my meals!" He didn't really mean it, but that's the best threat he could think of at the moment.

Chopper merely stared at him in disbelief. Sanji wouldn't say such things unless he was dead serious. Their eyes were locked for a few seconds until Chopper broke it by leaning to take Luffy into his arms. The captain's head slumped back, clearly showing he was knocked out. The reindeer looked at the cook and frowned. "I'll call someone back to take you."

"Alright."

Those were the last words he'd exchanged with Chopper. With anyone, really, as the rain continued to rage on to the point where he went and blacked out.

* * *

The sound of pages being flipped was the only thing that could be heard in the quiet room. It was expected, however, as two of the three who occupied the room were sleeping while the third read a book.

"Mmuhh."

The owner of the book lifted their gaze and looked at the groaning person in bed. A small smile grew on their lips as that same person began to shift left and right. It only meant one thing. They were getting up. Shutting the book and placing it on their lap, they leaned forward towards the bed and said, "I hope you're awake, cook-san"

Sanji lay still for some moments before turning his head towards that familiar and soft voice. "R-Robin-chwan?"

The reply he received was a gentle chuckle.

Hah. So it was her, he thought with a smile on his lips.

The blond laid there in utter bliss because his Robin-chwan was sitting beside him, waiting for him to get up from bed. She had even told him she was hoping he was awake. Sanji's heart fluttered with joy. Nothing could bring him down.

However, he quickly regained his memory.

Sanji jolted up from bed and turned to look at Robin to ask her about what happened after he blacked out, but the words were lost in his mouth as he found himself staring at the body of his lifeless captain on the other bed.

The bed sheets covered his body up to his chin. Usually, Luffy fidgeted in his sleep, causing some parts of his body showing. To Sanji, seeing him all covered up felt a little too awkward. Not only were the sheets covering him, but he also had what seemed to be a wet towel placed on his forehead. Frowning at the sight of his captain, he turned his gaze towards Robin.

"He's stable," she spoke softly, not even glancing at Luffy. Sanji understood, though. It was a bit painful to look at their captain at the moment. He was always so active, so full of life. Now, he didn't look like that at all, and it saddened them all.

"Oh. That's good."

"I should probably call our doctor to come and check up on you."

"No, that's alright." Sanji replied, rubbing the back of his neck.

Robin eyed him for a few moments, quietly observing his behavior. Chopper told her that Sanji had lost the ability to walk when he found them. But thankfully, it turned out to be only temporary. His body was in shock from the hit it received, that it shut down the nerves in his legs. Robin wasn't going to tell Sanji he was all right. Not until he'd ask her of course.

Silence found its way between the both of them, leaving them to look at other things. Robin looked at her book, while Sanji at one of his hands. He laid back on bed, wondering what happened to him to make him black out yesterday. He couldn't remember much other than being cold. That was probably the reason, he thought to himself.

The door's squeak broke the silence, causing Robin to glance up from her book and Sanji twist his head to look at who was at the door.

It was Nami.

In any other situation, Sanji would have jumped out of bed and tried to hug Nami for coming to visit him. However, the look on her face wasn't one he was used to see. Her skin was pale and she had dark circles under her eyes, clearly indicating that she hadn't been sleeping well. This worried Sanji.

"Na—"

"Oh, Sanji-kun, you're up." Nami murmured, a forced smile on her lips. This broke Sanji's heart. "That's great… I'm happy you're up." Her eyes then moved to glance at Luffy.

He didn't know how to reply to her.

The sound of the book being quickly shut caused Sanji to look back at Robin. She had her gaze fixed on Nami. The cook wondered what was going through the archeologist's mind. Robin, however, didn't stay long watching Nami. She stood up as if declaring she was leaving. Before she actually left, she turned her head to the side and smiled. "I'll be surveying the ship, Miss Navigator. You stay here," she said. And then, she did what she does best.

She disappeared.

Sanji looked away from where Robin was and looked at Nami, waiting for her to go after Robin and complain about how she didn't want to babysit two full-grown men, but surprisingly she didn't. She just stood where she was, her eyes fixated on Luffy.

"Nami-san?"

That seemed to grab her attention as she turned to look at him. "Yes, Sanji-kun?"

"Uhhm. You should sit down," he told her.

"Oh… right."

This felt too awkward for Sanji. He watched her take her seat. Her shoulders were slump and droopy. It wasn't a pose the Nami he knew took when sitting. It was as if she were another person at that very moment.

Where was the Nami-san he knew?

Deciding on not disturbing her any longer, he laid on his side, giving Nami and Luffy his back. He didn't like doing so, but he felt that it was something he was supposed to do.

After some time, he knew he was right in doing so.

Because as he lay there with his eyes shut in complete agony, Nami was crying. He looked over his shoulder for a moment, not being able to resist, and found that she had her upper body resting on Luffy's. Her hands clenched onto the bedsheets as she sobbed onto their captain.

When Luffy gets better, Sanji's going to murder him for the pain he was causing Nami, the cook decided before he forced himself into slumber.

* * *

I didn't want to put this at the start of the chapter to not dampen your spirits. I'm awfully sorry for not having updated this story for a very long time. The thing is, I've been very sick the past year to the point I couldn't really focus on more than one thing. I had to give up something, momentarily. So, it was for the best to give up writing this fanfiction for the time being. I'm all better now, thank God, but there's still a chance I might get sick again. Also, I am a law school student, so that's double the pressure.

I apologize if I ruined your mood after reading this. I just hope you enjoyed the chapter and look forward for the next. Thank you so much for being faithful to this story, even when I'm a bad writer/updater. Thank you.

Constructive criticism. are highly welcomed. =]


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N: I know I'm as slow as a snail. I do feel terribly guilty for posting this VERY late. I apologize. _

_But my life is so cramped right now, I only have a few minutes a day to write. _

_I hope you like this chapter. I don't think it's my best, personally. :P _

_Thank you! And don't forget to comment! 33_

_- Low_

* * *

A few days have passed since the incident. Of course no one spoke of it, since it seemed to bring out the dark side in everyone, especially Usopp and Chopper. Chopper because he'd never been as nerve wrecked as he was now. Luffy had always gone back on his feet as if everything was A-OK. This time he didn't. And Usopp. Well, he was another story.

Franky sighed at the thought of his friends. His crewmates were going through a very rough time. They all expected their captain to go back to how he used to be; filled with energy and enthusiasm. Franky hadn't seen him, and he didn't want to, but he knew if he were to see him, he'd be sorely depressed. From what Usopp would tell him, Luffy's face was gaunt. His breathing would be labored from time to time, as the tips of his fingers would twitch. It was as if Luffy was expressing his pain through his fingers.

This not only caused pain to him. Franky had noticed that their navigator was even more depressed than Usopp. She looked like a walking zombie. There were dark circles underneath her eyes, and she had a dangerously thin body from the lack of food.

Chopper had urged her to eat, and he wasn't alone. Zoro had threatened to force feed her, as well as Robin. Usopp cried, shaking her shoulders while she stared at him blankly. Franky told her he'd never share his cola with her if she didn't eat. Even Sanji, who'd never raised his voice at Nami yelled at her.

"I'm not hungry," she'd told him while he stood in front of her, leaning on his clutch.

Franky remembered how he felt at their encounter. He knew Sanji was mad from how tightly he held onto his clutch, taking in deep breaths to calm his nerves. It didn't work though.

"If you have an ounce of love for that man in there, you would nurture yourself." He'd told her through gritted teeth. "He'd be furious at how you're treating yourself and wouldn't even be able to look at you. I can't even look at you without getting mad." Sanji had snapped at her, turning his back against her in the end.

Tears had filled her eyes with what he'd said. It was then her turn to turn her back on them and then run to the girl's quarters.

Sanji's words left an awkward silence hanging between the crewmates. Nami loved Luffy? Franky was surprised at this, and when he had looked over at Usopp and Chopper, they looked surprise as well. However, when he had looked over at Zoro and Robin, waiting for them to say something, he noticed they weren't surprised as they were. Had they known, he wondered.

Sighing, he shook his head from the vision and kept on hammering the deck's floors. After that storm, the ship had taken some damage. It was true the ship was made from Adam's wood, which made it invincible. However, he had to check the ship over and over to see if it had any lose boards. The nails and ropes were not made from Adam's wood.

Things will turn out just fine, he thought to himself as he drowned himself in his work once again. Things will turn out just fine.

* * *

"If you don't eat, I might have to stick a needle into your arm." Chopper murmured dully to Nami as he began checking on Luffy. He'd told her countless of times, but each time she'd shoot him down with a stupid reason.

"I'm not hungry."

"You don't need to be hungry to eat."

Nami sighed, pressing her fingers against her temple. "I'm not hungry, Chopper. End of discussion."

"Fine then, I'll go and tell Zoro then." Chopper threatened. For the past day or two, Zoro had been forcing Nami to by throwing her out of the infirmary and refusing her to enter until she ate.

Nami eyed Chopper suspiciously. She didn't want to be tormented by Zoro again. The first time he'd thrown her out had been a nightmare. Never again was she going to leave Luffy's side.

"Alright. Just… just let me stay for a little longer, please."

Chopper observed her for a moment. One of the things he'd learnt about Nami was she was a fantastic liar. He didn't want to fall into her trap again.

"Please, Chopper."

Even if she had lied this time, he couldn't refuse anyway. The way she had been holding Luffy's hand every time he saw them was heart wrenching. He was too much of a sweetheart to say no.

"Alright. Just for a few moments and then you'll go eat."

"Thank you."

Nami turned her head away from Chopper and looked down at Luffy, her hand squeezing his, reassuring her that she was here by his side. He needed to know that, and that he was all that mattered to her.

His fever has had its ups and downs the past few days, and she had been there to witness every single one. She couldn't handle the pressure, but she forced herself to. She'd hold a wet towel and place it against his forehead, and then neck to make him feel comfortable. She'd tell him how she was here. She'd tell him how much she missed him.

And at nights, she'd tell him how much she loved him. How a fool she had been for not realizing this sooner. She'd cry by his bedside, begging him to come back to her.

Two days ago, he'd been mumbling, giving her hope that he'd wake up. It had only been gibberish words that Chopper said might be from his fever. Nami had cried herself to sleep that night.

She knew she wasn't feeding herself properly, but she was afraid that if she turned away from him for one second, something terrible would happen. Last time she had left the infirmary to help with the storm, and he'd gotten himself sicker. Never again will that happen.

Usopp had been affected deeply from that incident as well. He'd come to the infirmary, sitting beside her and facing Luffy. They had been silent for a few moments, before Usopp himself began crying.

"I had promised you that I'd be stronger. I'm sorry, Luffy. I'm so sorry," he'd sobbed.

Now Nami sat there, staring at his lifeless body. It was starting to feel normal, and that terrified her. She was starting to forget his energetic self. She squeezed his hand tightly and took a deep ragged breath at that thought.

"Luffy," she breathed out; her heart feeling like it was a million years old. She was hurting. Badly.

She hadn't realized Chopper left the infirmary until she looked away from Luffy, wanting to ask him to look over so she could get some food as she promised. Realizing that Chopper might have gone to get Zoro, Nami stood up from her stool and took a step away from Luffy.

Then she suddenly froze on spot. Her eyes were wide from shock and her breaths basically stopped. It was all because of one thing. One whisper.

"Na-Nami."

* * *

_I hoped you liked the chapter. I know it was a little too short. I had originally planned for this fic to be a 4/5 chapters fic. _

_sadly, as I said earlier, I don't have the time to write. And I don't want to abandon this fic. So I hope you won't mind_

_that I turn this fic from a 4/5 chapters fic into a 7/8 chapters. _

_again, I apologize! I hope you can forgive me._

_xoxoxoxo.  
_


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